Conventional aesthetically pleasing pieces of furniture, especially furniture for office use such as desks, normally have exposed edges that may be readily cracked, dented, or chipped during the manufacturing and retailing processes, or during actual use. Chips, dents, and the like occurring during normal manufacturing processes require a great deal of time and expense in providing touchup, repair, etcetera. When such chipping, cracking, or the like occurs when the product is being shipped or retailed, oftentimes it is necessary to discount the product in order to sell it, and in any event the purchaser gets a less aesthetically pleasing product. Damage occurring during actual use decreases the desirability of the product. Also, exposed edges of office furniture in particular, whether chipped or not, can catch clothing or effect injury if the user impacts them with sufficient force.
In the past there have been various attempts to minimize damage to edges of furniture, and/or protect special users from injuring themselves on furniture edges. Such attempts have conventionally comprised adding bumper like structures to already existing products such as by tacking or gluing protective surfaces on preexisting edges, encompassing the edges (or narrow faces). Such prior attempts have not been universally successful, however, in providing protection, feel, and cushioning integrated in an aesthetically desirable system.
According to the present invention, the drawbacks inherent in the prior art are overcome, and aesthetically pleasing furniture, especially office furniture such as desks, is provided which has edge structures that will not chip, crack, or dent in normal usage, and have feel and cushioning properties associated therewith. The desired results are accomplished according to the present invention by constructing the edge configurations as a design feature of the product being produced so that a completely integrated system is provided with an end product requiring no tacking, gluing, or the like and with no aesthetically undesirable overhanging structures.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a method of constructing an assembly for providing an edge of a piece of furniture is provided. The method includes forming an elongated core of relatively hard material, such as vinyl, having an elongated cross-member disposed in a plane, and an elongated leg disposed in a plane extending substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the cross-member and integral therewith over substantially the entire length thereof. A body of relatively soft, flexible material, such as polyurethane foam, is then formed (preferably molded) around the core cross-member so that the cross-member is substantially completely encompassed by the flexible, relatively soft material with a portion of the leg extending outwardly from the body. The assembly is utilized in a method of forming surfaces of a piece of furniture having one or more elongated narrow faces by forming a channel along a narrow elongated face elongated in the same direction as the face, and affixing the assembly to the face by disposing the portion of the core leg extending outwardly from the body in the channel, and affixing it in the channel. Affixing is preferably accomplished by a press fit between the core leg and channel, and utilizing adhesive.
The invention also comprises a structure for providing an edge of a piece of furniture. The structure consists essentially of a core and body. The core is an elongated extrusion of relatively hard material (e.g. vinyl) having an elongated cross-member disposed in a plane, and an elongated leg disposed in a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane of the cross-member and integral therewith along a substantial portion of the length thereof. A body of relatively soft, flexible material (e.g. polyurethane foam) is molded around the core cross-member so that the cross-member is substantially completely encompassed by the flexible material with a portion of the leg extending outwardly from the body. The outwardly extending leg portion preferably has a plurality of projections extending outwardly therefrom along substantially the entire width thereof from both faces, and the end of the leg is pointed. The body preferably has a substantially flat face from which the leg portion of the core extends, and a curved face opposite the flat face. The surface skin of the body may be textured, such as to simulate a wood grain.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a method of forming all of the edge surfaces of a desk, or like piece of furniture, is provided to construct a desk completely free of veneer edge banding. The desk can be moved through the manufacturing process with a minimum amount of touch-up and edge break out, and once assembled it can travel through the manufacturing process with virtually no danger of dents or chipping due to handling errors. The desk will arrive at the dealer in much better condition than the average desk shipped to him, and the ultimate user will have an aesthetically pleasing product that will not experience edge chipping, cracking, or the like during normal usage, and which will have edges providing feel and cushioning upon touch and/or impact. The method includes forming a channel in each of three elongated narrow faces comprising the desk front with a plurality of drawers mounted within the area defined thereby, inserting a core and body assembly in operative association with each channel, and mitring the corners of the assembly so that they have smooth transitions with each other. The edging assembly is capable of being cut or sawed cleanly so that it can create an exact fit to conventional furniture (e.g. flakeboard) panels.
If desired, a desk may be further defined by a pair of edges extending along either side thereof between side panels and a top panel forming the desk, with protection provided for such edges between the top and side panels. This is accomplished by beveling edges of the top and side panels to provide coincident beveled faces, and forming a channel in one of the beveled faces, and forming an extrusion of flexible thermoplastic material (e.g. an ABS plastic extrusion). The extrusion includes a body portion having a pair of faces coextensive with the beveled panel faces, and an anchoring portion adapted to be inserted in the channel, and an end portion adapted to provide the actual exterior edge of the panels. The panels are assembled so that the beveled faces thereof are affixed to the coincident faces of the extrusion with the anchoring portion in the channel and with the end portion of the extrusion providing the actual exterior edge between the panels, flush with the panel faces.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, drawers are provided for a desk or like piece of furniture compatible with the edging structures described above. In particular, structures adapted to form draw fronts are constructed by providing a piece of sheet metal having a pair of faces and a plurality of edges, and molding a thermoplastic or thermoset foam having a surface skin around one face and all the edges of the sheet metal. One face of the sheet metal is then attached to a drawer as the drawer front, adjacent the edging structures heretofore described and providing a smooth transition therewith.
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a method and assembly for edging a piece of furniture, particularly office furniture such as a desk, so that it has only nonmarkable edges which provide protection, feel, and cushioning. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention, and from the appended claims.